Snippets of Graham family adventures in faithfulness

Meet the Grahams

We are the Graham family–Jaron, Elizabeth, the little guy Q. The three of us are on an adventure in faithfulness, in Hamilton, New Zealand. The big dog Bailey is on an adventure to the grandparents’ house in Kansas. Being faithful is always a bittersweet thing. It requires much sacrifice and brings great joy. Adventure Graham is the place we chronicle our journey.

Before moving to New Zealand, we partnered in ministry in Jaron’s hometown of Lovington, NM for seven years. Together, we had the opportunity

to be the hands and feet of Jesus to a hurting community while serving as lead pastor (Jaron) and pastor to kids and families (Elizabeth), starting a non-profit after school program and a full time summer care program, and developing a community-wide food coalition for feeding and meeting utility assistance needs. We feel passionate about sharing Jesus through intentional relationships and serving the community.

All three of us have answered a call to serve as missionaries in Hamilton, New Zealand. Hamilton is a community of about 200,000 people on New Zealand’s north island, where only a small percentage of people participate in a church community, teen suicide rates are high, and pastoral education is limited. We serve as pastors of Crossroads Church, where we focus on ministry to families through playgroups, Kids’ Club, and weekly family worship. In addition, we help train and equip pastors and lay people for the New Zealand District Church of the Nazarene and give leadership to the newly developed Nazarene Theological College–Auckland.

Q loves family adventures (from the park to the beach to trips across the ocean), playing with friends, horse riding and swimming lessons, demonstrating new swing set tricks, ice cream, and life in general.

10 comments

Hi! I’m the NMI President at Fort Worth Northside. We’re looking forward to meeting you and hearing you tell about your adventures in New Zealand. Our service is Jan 20th at 6 PM. We’ll have a fellowship afterward. Let me know anything you need.

I have really appreciated Elizabeth’s posts on the Junia Project, etc. They resonant with me because of the journey I’ve been on, changing my position (after nearly 50 years as a senior pastor) from traditional complementarianism to egalitarianism. My journey and an in-depth examination of every relevant Scripture are detailed in my recent book: Should Women be Pastors and Leaders in Church? My Journey to Discover What the Bible Says About Gender Roles (available from Amazon, etc.). You can learn more here: pastorbillrudd.com. I think you would appreciate how God has taught me and the compelling case I present that there should be no gender-based restrictions on ministry leadership.

Greetings from the Pacific Northwest! I am NMI President at Liberty Bible Naz. in Vancouver and you are our new LINKS missions family!

I have just looked through your site, and LOVE what you are doing… especially the fun times with “Q”! We have a few things in common. My wife, Kathy, and I attended Shawnee while I was in seminary. It appears that is your “home church”. We just cruised around New Zealand… what an AWESOME place God has allowed you to minister!

We are getting organized for the new assembly year, so you should begin hearing from our LINKS secretary soon. Please know you will be prayed for and followed throughout the year. Feel free at any time to share a need or prayer request through our LINKS secretary or myself… even text me with anything urgent.

God’s richest blessings to you personally, and on that remarkable ministry!

David!! It is great to hear from you! Thank you so much for this message. Yes, Shawnee is my home church! I spent the first 25 years of my life there and still consider it home. They continue to love on our family so well. What years were you in seminary? Where all did you stop on your cruise around NZ? Some stops sort of near us are Auckland and Tauranga, though kiwis say we have it hard because we live 45 minutes from the nearest beach! We can’t wait to get to know you over the course of this year together.

You Guys moved to New Zeland!!! Wow! I hardly ever am on Facebook :/ I am super excited for you guys! That is awesome! Would love to hear more about life out there and how the ministry is going! Praying that things are going well!

Jamie,
Great to hear from you! We really appreciate the prayers. Maybe you should bring a mission team here sometime. Or if you and your family want an awesome place to visit we’ve got a great guestroom! 🙂

Hi Jaron (and beautiful family!),
It’s been a long time but we just saw your exciting news! We are so thrilled about this new adventure and journey for your family… and you’ll be on our side of the world! As you prepare, let us know if you have any questions about moving, living overseas with kids, etc… we’d be happy to help in any way. Praying for you and maybe we’ll see you some time somewhere in the world. 🙂 ~Brian and Julie 🙂

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The Graham Family

We are the Graham family. Jaron, Elizabeth, and the little guy, Q. The three of us are on an adventure in faithfulness. Being faithful requires much sacrifice and brings great joy. Adventure Graham is the place we chronicle our journey.Search for: